Getty Dawson Knox and Josh Allen celebrate a touchdown against the Washington Football Team.
Over the last two seasons, there was perhaps no Buffalo Bills player more polarizing for fans than tight end Dawson Knox.
That argument over his place in Buffalo’s offense seems to be over now.
Knox is in the midst of a breakout season, becoming one of Josh Allen’s top targets and already matching his touchdown total from his first two seasons combined. A series of big plays from the tight end have helped to fuel the league’s top offense, and led some of his supporters to look for apologies from those who had doubted him in the past.
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Knox Breaks Out
Heading into this season, many Bills fans were unsure whether they would see Knox play another snap with the team. He had a total of 676 yards and five touchdowns through his first two years, and there were a series of rumors that the team was in the hunt for then-Philadelphia Eagles tight end Zach Ertz, which would have likely spelled the end of Knox’s time with the team.
Many fans seemed to embrace the rumors, especially after the Bills had struggled to get production from their tight ends last year despite an otherwise high-flying offense. The tight end trio of Tyler Kroft, Lee Smith and Knox combined for just 442 yards and eight touchdowns in 2020, a total that Knox is on pace to match himself this season. He has 18 catches for 261 yards and five touchdowns through five games, prompting those who supported him through the struggles of the last two seasons to break out the “I-told-you-so’s.”
This week, some fans shared an “apology” form so those who had doubted Knox in the past could come clean. The form caught some viral attention, just as a similar form for those who doubted Allen caught fire early last season.
Working on His Game
While he showed off some big-play ability this year, Knox struggled with drops in each of his first two seasons. He dropped 10 passes in his rookie year — which accounted for one out of every five targets — but saw improvement last season, dropping four passes. Knox said he hooked up with an expert this offseason, “hand-eye trainer” Ryan Anderson.
A lot has changed in 10 months since Brandon Beane said teams didn’t need to fear the Bills tight end spot. Dawson Knox leads NFL in TD catches by a TE.
How it happened, plus fans are circulating a “Dawson Knox Apology Form” for those who doubted him.
Knox also told ESPN’s Marcel Louis-Jacques that getting a full offseason to work with Allen was a blessing after COVID-19 protocols had impacted the team the previous year.
“It was great being with Josh … It was good hanging out off the field, but on the field was great, too,” Knox said. “We just did a bunch of routes and it was during our first phase of Zoom meetings. So if there was a new play or route concept Dabes [offensive coordinator Brian Daboll] was installing, we were able to take it straight to the field. [Allen] kind of would work through some of the points where he would tell me what he was looking for. When to give him eyes on certain routes and real little details that we were able to hammer down on some of the new stuff, which was nice.”
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